Shloka 11

नरक-निर्णयः, पाप-कर्म-फल-व्यवस्था, प्रायश्चित्त-क्रमः, तथा हरि-स्मरण-परमत्वम्

Devanagari script

साध्वीविक्रयकृद् बन्धपालः केसरिविक्रयी तप्तलोहे पतन्त्य् एते यश् च भक्तं परित्यजेत्

Transliteration

sādhvīvikrayakṛd bandhapālaḥ kesarivikrayī taptalohe patanty ete yaś ca bhaktaṃ parityajet

Translation

He who traffics in a virtuous woman, the keeper of prisoners, the seller of lions, and he who abandons a devoted dependent—all fall into molten iron, scorched by the fruit of their own cruelty.

Word by Word

• साध्वीविक्रयकृत्: one who sells a chaste woman
• साध्वीविक्रयकृत्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: साध्वी (प्रातिपदिक) + विक्रय (प्रातिपदिक) + कृ (धातु) → कृत् (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; उपपद-तत्पुरुषः (साध्वीं विक्रयं करोति)

• बन्धपालः: jailer / keeper of prisoners
• बन्धपालः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: बन्ध (प्रातिपदिक) + पाल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (बन्धानां पालः)

• केसरिविक्रयी: seller of a lion
• केसरिविक्रयी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: केसरी (प्रातिपदिक) + विक्रयिन्/विक्रयी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (केसरिणः विक्रयी = seller of a lion)

• तप्तलोहे: in molten/heated iron
• तप्तलोहे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तप्त (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; तप् धातोः क्त) + लोह (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (तप्तं लोहम्)

• पतन्ति: fall
• पतन्ति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: पत् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (present), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन

• एते: these (people)
• एते: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; निर्देश (these)

• यः: who
• यः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; सम्बन्धसूचक

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय

• भक्तम्: food / a meal
• भक्तम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भक्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; कर्म

• परित्यजेत्: should abandon / neglect
• परित्यजेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: परि-त्यज् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (in instruction to Maitreya on dharma and consequences of adharma)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Cruelty and betrayal as dharma-violations: trafficking the virtuous, oppressive custody, exploitation of animals, and abandonment of dependents.

Teaching: Ethical

Quality: compassionate

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Exploitation (selling a virtuous woman, trafficking dangerous animals), oppressive imprisonment, and abandoning one’s dependent incur severe karmic retribution symbolized as falling into molten iron.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Reject human trafficking and exploitative labor; ensure humane custody practices; honor obligations to dependents (family, employees, students) with protection and care.

Vishishtadvaita: Protection (rakṣaṇa) is a positive dharma within the Lord’s real moral order; betrayal of those under one’s care violates the relational fabric central to Viśiṣṭādvaita ethics.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman

Bhakti Type: Dasya

FAQs

What is the significance of molten iron punishment in the Vishnu Purana?

It is a vivid Naraka-image used to stress that severe exploitation and betrayal of trust ripen into severe karmic suffering, reinforcing dharma as the basis of cosmic order upheld under Vishnu.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the ethical weight of abandoning a 'bhakta' here?

By listing it alongside grave abuses, Parāśara frames abandonment of a devoted dependent as a serious breach of duty and protection, not merely a personal failing.

The theological importance of Lord Vishnu in this context?

Even when Vishnu is not named, the teaching assumes a Vishnu-governed moral cosmos: dharma sustains the world, and adharma inevitably returns as suffering through the lawful order of karma.